


And We Will Protect Your Earth

by orphan_account



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Blood, F/F, Gore, Imprisonment, Interrogation, Sexual Themes, Torture
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-13
Updated: 2016-10-21
Packaged: 2018-07-23 17:59:34
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 6
Words: 6,449
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7474227
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jailbreak AU. Having failed to escape Peridot's ship, the Crystal Gems are brought to Homeworld to face punishment for the rebellion.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> A warning that this will probably get pretty gory later on.

She had felt something like this before.

When only darkness, a sea of black had surrounded her (or had she been submerged in?) and she had been brought, after what seemed an eternity, dripping and glistening with brine, to the surface to gasp and choke on the foreign substance that suddenly filled her lungs like a whirlwind of razors.

She remembered hands.

Rough hands as they forcefully coaxed her from the water, setting her onto a cold and hard surface that might only be likened to ice burst from a sapphire’s palms.

Then gasping, she opened her eyes for the first time, writhing free of her coat of water. Already exhausted from the effort, she shut her eyes again and lay there panting, water streaming down her every surface. 

A couple moments passed and her eyelids flickered open again, this time to take in all that was around her. She moved, inching her limbs forwards so she could raise herself a little higher. A gruff murmur and she felt something hard hit the back of  her neck, forcing her back down.

 

_ “Not so hard, you’ll damage them.” _

 

_ “What do I care?” _

 

The hard boot pressed down harder and she choked, relaxing submissively as the cruel grin of a jasper filled her world.

 

  
  


Pearl awoke as the humming of the ship surrounded her, panting from the vivid nightmare. 

Where was she?

Oh no. No no no. 

Garnet was split and poofed, Steven had been knocked out, then… 

Looking up at the yellow force field that held her in her cell, she reached up shakily with her hand, fingers hovering over its buzzing surface. 

“Steven? Garnet? P?” A groggy voice sounded and her head shot up, her hand jerking from the field as she tried to locate the source of the voice. Eyes wide, she pressed against the wall, voice quiet and tentative. 

“...Amethyst?”

“Pearl!”

Amethyst’s voice was uncharacteristically frantic. It sent a shiver down her back. She pressed against the cold wall, helplessly searching for the young Quartz, desperate for company. 

“What happened?”

“I-I don’t know!” She cried, feeling a creeping sense of dread begin to spread from her chest. “T-They…”

Amethyst cut her off. Another time, she might've scolded her for her negligence of manner. But amethyst sounded so… Hopeless. It was unnerving. 

“...Stars, P… What are they going to do with us?” 

Pearl slumped against the wall, clutching at her face with her hands. She couldn't go back there. She wouldn't be able to bear seeing homeworld again. A pang in her chest told her she was failing Rose. She had failed to protect Steven, failed to protect the earth, and now they were going to be shattered. 

She hadn't realised she had began to gasp, she clapped her hands over her mouth, trying to stifle the noise, she couldn't let Amethyst hear… 

All rational thought disappeared as her mind began to sink into the metaphorical quagmire of a panic attack. 

“P? Pearl?”

Amethyst’s voice grew increasingly concerned. Pearl yanked at the reins of her conscience. She had to calm down, pull herself together. She stuttered, voice laced with sobs. 

“I-I… I'm alright… it’s g-going to be…  _ alright _ .”

They lapsed into silence for a while. Pearl muffled and cut off her sobs, finally descending into a sort of calm. Voice shaking, she wiped her fingers over her gem. 

“Amethyst? Where's Steven?”

“I dunno… Jasper knocked him out, then…”

“...Then took us.”

Pearl rubbed her eyes, feeling guilt consume her. As if on cue, Amethyst called softly. 

“Don't blame yourself for this, P. It wasn't your fault. It wasn't any of our faults. We just weren't… We just weren't strong enough.”

“...weren't strong enough.” She echoed quietly, eyes squeezing shut. She fell onto her side, curling up and pressing her gem to the ground. 

Hours seemed to pass and she stayed there, eyes wide and unblinking, waiting for anything to happen. 

Finally, a loud grating rang out, a terrifying lurch that was horribly familiar. 

“Pearl? What's happening?”

Numbly, she sat up. 

“We've landed.”

Loud footsteps rang out, causing the both of them to flinch. Pearl shot to the back of her cell, trembling like a frightened bird. In the next cell, she could hear Amethyst’s footsteps as she paced, unsure of what to do. 

A pair of Citrines marched into the hallway, armed to the teeth. Pearl felt a shudder rip through her. She hadn't seen such gems since the war. 

The force field disappeared and the two entered her cell. She eyed the destabilizers strapped to their sides and she froze, cursing herself for being unable to summon her spear. She hadn't recalled seeing any Citrines on the ship before, they must have warped in after their capture. 

Wordlessly; a pair of cuffs were attached to her ankles and wrists and she was yanked out roughly. 

“Pearl! P! No!”

Amethyst slammed herself against the field, crying out in pain and shock  as she watched them drag her away. 

It was only then that Pearl fought, struggling to pull away, yanking until the cuffs dug into her flesh and rubbed them raw. 

The Citrines ignored her feeble protests, they stopped for a moment and kicked her feet out from under her before continuing on their journey. Left panting and struggling to get to her feet, putting up resistance became near impossible. 

Pearl renewed her struggles as the entrance came into view. They paused there and stood, waiting. 

Minutes later, Amethyst was taken over as well, cursing and fighting her guards, identical to Pearl’s own. 

Then finally, Jasper stomped into the room, dragging a terrified looking Steven, who cried out at the sight of his friends. Jasper cuffed him and Pearl jerked weakly in response, protesting. 

Ruby and Sapphire trailed quietly behind, even Ruby silent in the face of such peril. Though one of their guards sported impressive burns. 

Finally came Peridot and Lapis. The latter had a couple of visible bruises, obviously of Jasper’s doing. She looked… Remorseful, to say the least. She looked utterly miserable. 

Their eyes met for a moment and Pearl found them filled with regret. She found her feet and knelt, wearily propping herself up. 

Deep down, she knew the worst was yet to come. 

The door slipped open and Jasper exited, sobbing Steven in tow. The Citrines dragged her out, one of them giving her a kick as they matched pace with Jasper. 

She risked a whisper, wanting nothing more than to comfort him. She calmed her voice and smiled at him tiredly. 

“Steven, it's going to be ok.”

Steven looked up at her, eyes incredulous and feet dragging. Then Jasper growled and one of the Citrines drew her destabilizer, jabbing it into her side briefly. 

Steven screamed in horror as she crumpled in pain. She wheezed, sent one vehement glare at Jasper, and fell silent. 

They passed the rest of the journey, tensions high. Walking in a straight line, she looked back once in awhile, taking note of her surroundings. The rest of their little party were glum. 

They were led to a building, then warped elsewhere. The process repeated many times. 

She knew why they were doing this. It was important to keep their existence a secret, the last thing the diamonds needed was their presence triggering another rebellion. 

She kept her head down, occasionally sending reassuring glances at Steven, who only looked increasingly apprehensive. 

The last warp brought them into a massive golden hall, Pearl found herself looking up at one of the figures she hoped to never see again. 

 

\---

 

He was pushed roughly to his knees as the rest of the homeworld gems crossed their arms in a salute. Steven couldn't help but whimper in fear. They had hurt him, they had hurt his friends

Yellow diamond turned an acknowledging eye towards them. Her voice mocking in nature as she regarded their motley crew. Steven couldn't help but flinch under her sharp gaze. 

“... _ This  _ is what's left of the rebellion?”

Surprisingly, it was Peridot who stepped forward. 

“Yes, my diamond.”

“And where is Rose Quartz?”

He cried out in surprise and fear as Jasper yanked him to his feet and lifted his shirt. He squirmed uncomfortably in her grip, he felt strange, like that time he had eaten too many donuts and gotten sick. 

“My diamond, this human has the Rose Quartz gem. Other than this, Rose Quartz was not found.”

Yellow diamond was silent, the room seemed to freeze as her eyes pinned on the gemstone in his navel.

After what seemed to be an eternity, the diamond spoke, straightening and waving a hand dismissively. 

“I will deal with this later. And the rest of them?”

Steven let out a little yelp as he was dropped, then sat, crossing his legs and turning around to look at his friends. 

“The rest of them are the crystal gems. My diamond, I assure you they are nothing to worry about.”

Jasper dipped her head and stepped back and Peridot mirrored her similarly. 

“Hm. Very well, the both of you are dismissed. Peridot, you will report to your manager for reassignment. As for you two…”

Her eyes fell on Lapis, then moved to Sapphire. Ruby jerked against her restraints protectively, eyes widening in realisation. 

“... You will be returned to Blue Diamond’s court. She will be the one to determine what will become of you.”

Sapphire was unresponsive. 

Lapis crossed her arms in salute. 

Ruby began to scream. 

As the guards led them both out of the room; her shrill cries increased in volume. “No! You can't do this! Sapphire! No! No!”

Steven could feel his body freezing up. Even from where he was, he could see, he could feel the silent tears rolling down all of their faces. 

“...Lapis.”

As if she’d heard him, she looked back just as the doors closed, giving him a sorrowful, yet resigned look before Jasper yanked on her arm and she was gone. 

The momentous silence was broken only by Ruby’s soft sobs, and for a while, no one spoke. Amethyst was sending small glances at Ruby, perhaps hoping it would provide some sort of comfort. 

Finally, Pearl, fighting her guards, yanked herself to her feet to glare defiantly at the diamond. Steven watched her, half of him wanting to scream at her to stop, another half awed at her bravery. 

“ _ What  _ do you want?! If you're going to shatter us, you might as well hurry it up!”

Almost all the members of the court flinched at her outburst. Steven could feel the shock running through the room, leaving whispers in its wake. 

Yellow diamond seemed unfazed, only inclining her head to keep her in her sights. 

Steven shrunk at the intensity of the glare, then began a slow crawl towards the rest of his friends. He could heal them. 

A sharp look from all three of them stopped him in his tracks and he paused, tears welling in his eyes. 

“You will  _ not  _ be shattered. Not yet. Simply put, I want information.”

She stopped, gaze burning as it fell on Ruby, then Pearl. 

“Additionally,  _ some _ of you can be repurposed.”

Steven felt a the urge to cry strike him at the fear in both their eyes. He wasn't even sure what  _ repurposed  _ meant, but he knew it couldn't be anything good. He sniffled, then looked up. 

“What are you going to do to us? What are you going to do to my friends?”

The diamond applied her stare onto him. 

“...and what are  _ you,  _ supposed to be?”

“I'm Steven, Steven Universe. Uh… my mom’s Rose Quartz.”

“Rose Quartz? Hm.”

Once again, the room lapsed into silence as she tapped on a yellow screen that came up. 

“Very well. Guards, take them away. I will call for them later.”

Steven sagged as two gems he didn't recognise stooped to pick him up, he followed them out, legs tired from walking so much. 

“Pearl? Are we gonna be ok?”

For once, she didn't even glance over. and deep in his heart, the silence unsettled him.    
  



	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I am ashamed to admit that the comments motivate me. Apologies.

Though Steven couldn't tell night from day, he felt sleepy. He’d been sitting there for what seemed like years. 

It was quiet outside.

Maybe days had passed, weeks, he had fallen asleep a couple of times and was hungry and thirsty.

The floors and walls of his cell were cold and hard and uncomfortable. He longingly remembered how soft his bed was and curled up in a corner. Back home he'd have Lion, who was nice and warm, Pearl would watch him sleep, Amethyst would be eating everything in the fridge, and Garnet… He didn't really know what Garnet actually  _ did.  _

Well she'd be doing what she usually did. 

It wasn’t long before he finally drifted asleep, exhaustion finally catching up to him.

 

When he woke up again, he was somewhere different. His head ached and he sat up with a groan. 

He looked around and saw only black, wreckage littered the place. 

_ “...a-agh...” _

“Lapis?”

Running aimlessly, he grew more and more panicked. She had sounded like she had been in pain, and if he couldn’t get to her soon... 

A blue figure became visible and he ran to her, eyes wet from worry. 

“Lapis!”

He skidded to a halt and dropped to the ground beside her. She was barely breathing, her body almost completely still, though small shudders ran through her every once in awhile. She knelt there, supported only on her elbows and knees, head on the floor. 

“Lapis… Oh my god, are you ok?”

When there was no response, Steven dared another step forwards, a worried noise building in his throat as he took a closer look. 

He reached out, hands only a breath away from her shoulder when she collapsed onto her side. 

Steven could feel his chest tightening. 

Her dress was in tatters, ripped up like she’d fought several gem monsters and only just come out unpoofed. Moving quietly around her revealed a metal appendage clamped around her gem, thin spikes sunken in the blue stone. 

“Lapis?”

Her eyes opened suddenly, her breath immediately speeding up as fear flooded into her mind, shrinking her pupils. 

“St-Steven!”

A pained groan cut her off and she tensed. Steven reached out and gently touched her chest, his hand came away wet, warm and dark blue. 

“L-Lapis… Is this…”

“Steven! L-Listen! you- agh!”

“Did they do this to y-you?”

Steven’s eyes were wide. He'd never seen so much blood. He'd never seen anyone hurt so badly.  

Her chest was bloody and didn't look like it was shaped quite right. Her arms and legs were covered in deep cuts and there were bloody gouges around her gem. 

“I-I can heal you!”

Lapis only gave a pained cry in reply, Steven pulled his hand away quickly. It was only then that he began to realise how strange everything was. 

He obviously wasn't with Lapis, wherever she was… 

Was he dreaming?

Could he still heal her in a dream?

Feverishly licking his hand, he reached out towards one of her wounds, trembling.

Lapis flickered.

“H-Huh?”

Her features seemed to glitch and distort, her back arching as her mouth opened in a scream. 

When she opened her eyes again, they were wide and mirrored. 

Hurriedly, he pressed his hand to the wound. He pulled back after several minutes, finding it hadn't healed at all, he tried again, and again. And again. 

He was growing frantic now. 

Why wasn't it working?

Did he have to think happy thoughts? No. Maybe he had to just…

He squeezed his eyes shut and focused.

When he opened his eyes again, the wound was still weeping against his hand and Lapis seemed to be in even more pain than before. 

“Lapis… It's n-not working. Why isn't it working?!”

She gave no reply and it only unnerved him more. 

Then all of a sudden, she flickered one final time and darkness surrounded him. 

 

His eyes snapped open and he drew his knees up to his chest, drenched in cold sweat, panting, and wishing for the comfort of home. 

  
  



	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And more pain.

 

Silence, and a glare. 

Even her brethren remains silent, shooting her an apprehensive and criticizing look. 

It was quiet, only her, the Pearl and the Jasper whom had come to Earth in the room. She looked up at the both of them in pure defiance, drooping from her restraints. A dull ache rippled from her gem, the device that had latched onto it. She hadn’t quite realized what it was for yet, but it seemed that no matter how much she was hurt, she never poofed.

She knew not to put it beyond Homeworld to think of something like this, but on the other hand, she had to admit it was smart. 

If she poofed, she could remain in her gem indefinitely, oblivious to pain, negotiation and threat until she decided to return. 

The Jasper glanced at the Pearl; she’d seen her at Yellow Diamond’s side before, and reached out, grabbing her chin and forcing her to her feet as her knees threatened to buckle beneath her.

Pearl kept her eyes cold and blank, watching warily. 

Jasper gestured to the Pearl by the door, turning to look at her through the corner of an eye. 

“You. Get me a tap.”

The Pearl visibly flinched at the thought, but gave a quick bow and moved away.

Easily, Jasper grasped both her wrists in one hand and unclipped them from the restraints, careful to shut off any opportunity there was for escape. She kicked uselessly, feet pushing against the Quartz, but the chains on her ankles were heavy and she could only muster a small amount of strength.

Jasper paid her no mind, lifting her a couple feet into the air before clapping another set of restraints onto her, holding her down on a table. As soon as the bindings were secure, Jasper turned away again, taking the device from the Yellow Pearl and muttering an order.

“And call a Peridot.”

Pearl struggled on the surface, panicking and feeling an ancient fear begin to arise. She stopped, head dropping to one side Jasper slammed a hand down with a snarl. 

There was a buzz and new footsteps entered the room, a familiar metal clanking reached her. 

“Why are you always wasting my time?”

Jasper grunted and moved away from the table. 

“Listen, just install the tap, then you can leave. And stop your whining.”

Peridot stopped beside the table, picking up the wire and twirling it between two floating fingers. 

“Wait, do you not know how to do this yourself? You really are a brainless clod!”

Jasper’s hand swung and caught Peridot by the throat, the smaller gem’s laughs silenced immediately. 

“Do your job and shut up!”

Peridot swallowed as she was released and began muttering quietly as she brought up a screen, using the rest of her fingers to press down on Pearl’s gem, Pearl looked up with a glare. 

Peridot scoffed and pressed the wire into the center of her gem, watching as its razor sharp length easily cut and slipped in. She met the other pearl’s blank gaze and felt herself shudder. 

There was discomfort first, then the pain blossomed and she cried out, struggling as she felt it probe, its sharpness tearing into her. 

Squeezing her eyes shut and clenching her teeth, she writhed. 

“There. Get her to stop moving and we can start.”

Jasper reached under the table and there was a clinking. The restraints tightened considerably until they were painful. 

“Alright.”

Pearl felt weak. 

Resistance was leaving her. 

Why was she even fighting?

There was a painful tug in her gem that made black spots dance in her eyes and she let out a tiny whimper of pain. A flicker of blue and she watched helplessly as a hologram projected itself on the ceiling. 

She barely noticed as Peridot stepped into range, quickly setting up a device that kept the holographic circle in its sights, silently taking and recording whatever they needed. 

“Good. You're dismissed.” 

Jasper muttered, nudging Peridot towards the door. Peridot seemed about to make a retort, thought better of it and left, the yellow pearl scuttled out after her. 

More black spots filled her vision as a sob shook her body. 

_ I'm sorry, Rose...  _

_ It's over.  _

  
  


“Your Pearl has given us quite enough information. there's honestly no use in hiding anything.”

Ruby screamed, eyes wide with rage as Steven sat resigned beside her, staring at the floor with a wobbly lip. 

“What did you do to her!?”

“Nothing, we merely used a little bit of force when she refused to cooperate.”

To demonstrate, the diamond held up a hand and brought up a screen, playing small clips of what they had managed to extract. 

Steven couldn't tear his eyes away, watching memories even he recognised play out before his eyes. 

_ “What do you know?! You haven't even met her!” _

He saw his own face through Pearl’s eyes, startled by her outburst. It was only when the hologram was dissipated that he managed to ground himself again. 

“As you can see, there's honestly no point in resisting. Tell us what you know, and your sentence will be painless.”

“There's nothing to say!”

Ruby shouted, seemingly having ceased her fight with her guards. “What do you want?! If anyone had known anything, it would have been Pearl or-”

She seemed to choke. 

“And who?”

“... Garnet.”

“What's wrong with Garnet?”

Steven finally piped up, come to think of it, he hadn't seen her since they'd been captured. 

“Where is she?”

Ruby was silent. 

“The sapphire has been broken. She was a traitor and the decision to break her was unanimous..”

“...the sapphire…?”

Then it fell into place. 

Ruby, the gem beside him, and sapphire had appeared only after they'd been captured. Garnet had disappeared. 

Then…

“Yes, the abomination of a fusion has been dealt with.” 

Yellow diamond’s eyes bored into him. 

“Permanently. Now tell me what happened after the war? How did you survive the corruption?”

The interrogation lasted for hours, then finally, finally, Yellow diamond stopped. The guards hauled him to his feet and he shook, his knees buckled. 

Once he was able to stand, they marched him out. Yellow diamond’s voice echoed after them. 

“Pearl, contact an Agate. We’ll see if this Rose Quartz shield can really deflect corruption.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Well that was a long wait.

It took a while for boredom to reach her.

The place was anything but quiet, she had only once seen the outsides- swarming with full grown Jaspers and Amethysts.

Then she'd been restrained and shoved in a tiny room to await whatever was coming.

Halfway through she abandoned all politeness and sank down in a clumsy pile, playing with her hair. Eventually she couldn't help but drift off into sleep.

After what seemed like years, the door was roughly shoved open and she was escorted out by another amethyst.

“Where are we goin’?”

“A little entertainment.”

She followed after her hulking counterpart, uncharacteristically quiet. Maybe she'd get to see the others again! Her spirits lifted a little at that.

They reached a door; which opened to the other amethyst's hand, and emerged into a large room. It was neat, something Pearl would have appreciated-- and Lo and behold, there she was. Pearl was motionless, eyes shut, restrained. It was hard to tell whether she was conscious or not.

She dared to cry out.

“Pearl?”

Immediately she was cuffed about the head, to her dismay, Pearl showed no sign that she heard.

 

She was brought over to stand at the side, and waits. After a couple minutes, Ruby is brought to stand alongside her.

Steven and Sapphire are nowhere to be seen.

After a series of gestures and nudges at her ally, she finally spots him, bedraggled and exhausted, Jasper half-dragging him by an arm.

He is left beside Pearl, Jasper still holding him. Jasper nudges him forcefully and speaks, her gruff voice only barely audible to the rest of them. However, Steven’s eyes widen in fear and that was a clear indicator that it couldn't have been anything good.

The orange Quartz leaves and the half human remains, looking up at them, meeting Amethyst’s gaze then glancing back down at Pearl, her shallow breathing now just visible.

She sees him dip to one knee, his mouth moves and Pearl lifts her head weakly, just to acknowledge him. It's almost calming just to see that silent exchange between them.

Then there's a beep, Steven jolts, Pearl shudders and Amethyst watches on in blind horror as a beam is shot towards them. Steven’s shield is up in seconds, deflecting it, but he's already crumbling under the pressure, his knees buckling from the sheer power and weight. He falls, shield expanding to accommodate, but not quick enough. A few centimeters shy of the edge, the beam glances off and burns into Pearl’s hip. The pale gem instantly convulses, restraints pulling as she cries out.

Steven glances back in terror and slips, falling atop her. Instantly, the beam shuts off and the two are left sprawling and motionless.

 

 

 

“Pearl? _Pearl?!_ ”

He’s yanked back by Jasper, whom grabs Pearl roughly, lifting her and prodding the spot. He lets out a cry of protest. Pearl remains motionless, then gives a sudden shudder as the black begins to spread.  

 

“She might’ve been fully corrupted had you not shielded her at all.” The quartz grunts, then drops her.

“Shatter her and her pain won’t last long. She’s useless to us now anyways.”

“Sh-Shatter?!” He stutters out, meeting Jasper with wide eyes.

Jasper only rolls her eyes, nudging Pearl’s lifeless body with her boot.

“Yes. Now are you going to do it or not?”

He summons his shield, he knows how much he can do with it, but even the thought of bringing it down on her gem shakes him. But if he doesn’t, she’ll suffer... and hurt. His hand shaking, he brings the rim to rest on the smooth surface, jolting as she makes a small noise and opens her eyes slightly, just enough to give him a tired look, breaths whistling through her mouth.

He pressed down, feeling it meet resistance. Pearl let out a choked cry of pain, shuddering under him, he can feel the vibration through his shield. 

 

It’s too much.

 

He pulls away, dissipating his shield, falling onto the ground, sobbing, crying. Jasper gives him a look of disgust.

“Pathetic. Do you  _ want  _ to see her in pain?”

She easily unlocks the restraints and picks her up. Pearl writhes weakly in her hold, eyes terrified and pained. Jasper glances at her, then promptly snaps her neck in her bare hands. Pearl goes limp with a high-pitched wheeze, and then she’s gone. Catching her gem, Jasper glances at it for a moment before squeezing, hard.

The crack is piercing and sharp and the two halves drop before Steven. 

She kicks them away, yanking him up as he shakes violently in shock and pain and grief. 

“Get up. Yellow Diamond is going to want a report and we can’t be late.”

He trembles as he’s pulled along, eyes never leaving the two pieces of pearl lying on the ground until the door shuts behind them and he passes out from sheer exhaustion.


	5. Chapter 5

  
  


It's quiet, so quiet in the room. Steven disappeared through the door with Jasper, and the other Amethyst, grinning, pulls her up and heads towards the same exit. The soldier pauses, waiting as the one holding Ruby follows suit, and Amethyst takes the time to bend over, scooping up Pearl in her two hands. She can feel Ruby’s look burning into her back and she turns around, cupping the shards. They share a silent moment before she shifts a pocket onto her pants and conceals them. 

Almost as if on cue, she’s tugged along. She follows without resistance, not lifting her eyes from the floor until she’s returned to her cell. 

Then she looks up, pulls Pearl’s shards from her pocket, and cries.  

  
  


 

Peridot hadn’t been around this part of the structure much, but she had been assigned to  _ keep tabs  _ on the era one Lazurite. 

She'd never even heard of a Lazurite before then. 

Where this gem was, was another issue. 

Mutterming irritatedly at herself, she stared down at her screen, just trying to find the prisoner before she got lost down here forever. Inserting several of her fingers into the door lock, she turned it, running the lock code through her screen several times before unlocking it with a simple tap. It slid open easily, revealing a long corridor strangely unlit. 

A prickle of warning crept up her back, she hesitated, then flickered on her gem light, following the green spotlight into the corridor as the door shut behind her.

Its completely silent inside. 

She walked forward at a steady crawl, some part of her still containing that foolish inert fear of the dark, some defect that will probably be removed within the next two eras.

She stopped and studied one of the cells. Era one, there’s no forcefield to prevent gems from escaping here, only bars, made of some fusion material surely. 

A noise made her jump, fingers spinning to form a blast cannon. She waits, when no more noise followed, she willsher light brighter. With a safe circle of light around her, she proceeds, then gives a startled shout as she slips, her gravity connectors skidding as she topples, face first into something cold and just slightly soft. 

There’s a crunch and a cry of pain, its not hers.

Her first priority is getting up, fingers slipping in the wetness, she struggles to her feet, feeling sharp… sticks? Scrape at her.  

With a hiss of disgust, she snaps upright, then turns her light downwards. 

The body of a tortured gem greets her and she jolts back in surprise and fear, her gem flashing and lighting up even more of the area in response.  

The scene meets her eyes and she glimpses broken bars slick with blue blood, floor covered in the same, the Lazurite is lying halfway out of the cell, seemingly impaled on several of the broken bars. 

Her shock is slowly overcome with horror and she steps closer, just brushing her floating fingers over the Lazurite’s gem and the device, drilled deep into it. No wonder she hadn’t dissipated her form.

The gem suddenly twists, there’s a horrible noise as she tears herself off the metal. Her fingers, bloody and torn dig into Peridot’s limb enhancers.

“ _ Take it out, take it OUT TAKE IT OUT. _ ”

Then all of a sudden she’s limp again, wheezing with pain as her fingers clench and scrape into the floor, nails torn and bloody.

Peridot glanced at the device. She knows what taking it out entailed. If she allowed her to retreat into her gem, she could stay there indefinitely. 

“I’m under no authorization to do that. I have to make my report… Was whoever did this to you given diamond clearance?”

There’s no answer but a rhythmic gasping. With the amount of shock she was in, she doubts she even knew. She tries another approach.

“Why were you on Earth?”

Once again there is no answer and Peridot stops to think. She won't speak in this state, that much is clear. As gently as possible, she encircles her with green light, lifting her and setting her down in another cell. As the green light leaves her, the blue gem slumps as Peridot rolls her onto her back. 

Her eyes are glassy, dull. She croaks, blood streaming from her lips. 

“Take it out. P-Please. It hurts so m-much.”

Peridot flinches at her obvious pain. She shakes her head and pulls up her screen. 

“I'm sorry, I can't. But if you answer my questions, I'll see what I can do.”

A technician like her wasn't used to war, fighting, torture, pain. She didn't know what she was going through, didn't know how she felt or what she needed. 

“Who did this to you?” She begins gently, it's not something she usually practices, but it seems to be one of the only things that'll work here. 

“I don't k-know.”

“Why were you on Earth?”

“Diplomatic m-mission back during the w-war.”

“What is your affiliation with the Crystal Gems?”

“T-They imprisoned me for thousands of years, u-used me.”

She stopped, looking over the rest of her questions. Mostly just documenting her physical status. 

“Can you tell me where you’re hurt?”

The Lazurite gives a shudder, her eyes widen for a fraction of a second and she struggles as she sucks in a breath. She falls completely limp. Peridot jerks in shock, then crawls forward and squeezes her hand gently, trying to elicit any sort of reaction. She finds her unconscious. 

She rolls her over carefully. She'll have to look herself. One of her fingers float over and prod gently at one of the wounds. 

 

_ Lacerations and bruising to the face and neck.  _

_ Extensive damage to ribs and chest.  _

 

She prods her foot, bare, there is a nasty swelling around her ankle, bruised and bleeding. The blue gem barely stirs. Peridot tuts to herself and enters another line. 

 

_ Swelling and twisting of right ankle.  _

_ Suggestion: allow time to recover. Administer anaesthetic. Monitor regularly.  _

 

She steps out of the cell and slides the door shut, locking it in place. She glances once more at her before turning and leaving. She hopes she'll never have to come back. 

  
  



	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It has been a while.

  
  


Lapis had tried to get out. There might not have been enough water, but her blood had been more than enough to grip the bars and shatter them beyond recognition. 

She's dragged herself out, foolishly tried to fly in her state, mind fogged and delirious with pain, and fallen on the shards. She was left gasping, feeling the pieces in her, pressing against her insides until the pressure grew too much and-

She blinked awake with a groan.

She was no longer lying on a bed of pain, the floor was smooth and cold beneath her. Exhaling slowly through her mouth, every breath was painful. Her chest was all wrong and it hurt. 

She needs to get out. 

She lifts a hand, feeling pain as she draws the blood from her cuts, pulling it from her healing veins. It hurts and she lets out a pained noise, dropping it and losing all control. 

There's something stopping it. Something making it harder to pull. There's pressure all over her and strangely, it feels good.

Turning her head weakly, she glimpses green patches covering her wounds. A long tape wraps around her chest and there's another one around her foot. This is the fifth time these have appeared. She lifts a hand and picks at the tape, tearing it off with a shiver of pain. Within the next few minutes, the bandages lie unraveled around her. She collapses out of exhaustion, panting weakly as her fingers dig into the now bleeding, swollen mess of her ankle. 

Almost instantly, blood pours from multiple of the wounds, pooling around her. She lets out a sigh of relief and lifts her hand, taking control of it then curling tendrils of it around the bars. Pain shoots through her and her arm drops out of reflex, body curling into itself. 

She can barely remember what happened after they’d been brought back. She’d been called back to Blue Diamond’s court, then they had thrown her in a cell, and drilled, put something into her gem. Then what?

Pain.

Just endless pain had followed. 

She hadn’t understood why it was happening, but she’d screamed her throat raw. 

And now...

She lets out a weak sob of pain, it hurts, so, so much.

Its dark, she can’t tell how long she’s been in here, her eyes make the darkness move, twisting formless darkness into silhouettes and making her shudder at every little noise. On the other hand, it makes her feel alone, helpless, makes her feel like the pain will never end. She drags herself closer to the bars, resting her burning cheek against the cold bars and relishing in the feeling. Everything hurts, but she feels tired.

Tucking her head between her arms, she shudders and whimpers quietly, maybe escape can wait… just until it hurts a little less.

 

 

 

“Glad that nuisance has finally been dealt with. That fiasco was very informative.”

Yellow diamond sighs, voice sardonic and droning. She taps at a screen.

Steven remains quiet. He doesn't want to talk, doesn't want to remember what happened to Pearl. 

“Now tell me, what do you know about how the war ended? Why were you protecting that miserable planet?”

He glares at the floor, an almost childish display, before he finally asks. 

“Why do you hate Earth so much?”

There’s a prominent pause, the diamond looks back at him, eyes shining and hard with repressed anger.

“Do you know Pink diamond?”

“N-No.”

“Of course they wouldn’t tell you of their barbaric deeds. She was a newborn, we chose the Earth for her, as her colony to rule. She loved it, wanted to please us all. No one ever expected what would happen next. Rose Quartz shattered her. We tried to help, it was too late. White was only notified hours later. By the time we got there… there was nothing left but shards.”

Steven is shocked. No one has ever mentioned Pink diamond to him before, and Rose Quartz…

“N-No! Rose Quartz would never, she’d never do such a thing!”

The diamond narrows her eyes. “Is that what they told you?”

“I-I...”

A sudden dawning of realization of just how small he was, how little he knew hit him and he stuttered. Yellow diamond caught his hesitation and muttered, eyes condescending. 

“I would have thought they might’ve told you more. Now tell me, what do you know about what happened towards the final stages of the war? And that is, the war itself?”

“Nothing. I know a whole lot of gems were shattered and corrupted, but apart from that...”

Still shaken, he trailed off, scratching his cheek and looking away.

She looked down at him for a moment, then tapped her screen another few times, there was a long and uncomfortable pause before she called out. 

“Pearl.”

“Yes my diamond?”

“Contact Blue and tell her that I…  _ humbly request  _ information from the prisoner she has.” 

The yellow pearl gave a quick nod and scurried out, passing the half-gem without a second glance. Steven watches her go, and when he looks up again, Yellow Diamond is no longer looking at him. A heavy yank on the back of his shirt has him standing up in a daze, and once again, h doesn’t resist as Jasper leads him away.


End file.
